PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS July 15, 2010 BP: ONCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY At last, some good news for BP. Its stock has sunk so low – closing yesterday at 401.75p – that investors are jumping at the chance to snap up cheap stakes in the oil giant. Clients of Barclays Stockbrokers have been piling into the stock – a third of [...]
Fed reduces forecast for 2010 growth July 14, 2010 THE US economy’s recovery will be slower over the rest of the year than originally forecast, according to the Federal Reserve, which yesterday revised down its growth projections for the first time since the economic rebound began. Minutes of the Fed’s meeting, published yesterday, showed its central forecast is now for the economy to grow [...]
Barratt hikes profit forecasts July 14, 2010 BARRATT Developments yesterday said its full-year profits would come in above expectations as it continues to focus on maximising selling prices while keeping a lid on costs. The UK’s third largest housebuilder has pencilled in an operating profit of at least £85m with margins rising to four per cent. The average selling price rose by [...]
Our nation of shoppers is not about to quit the habit yet July 14, 2010 SINCE the onset of the recession, the pressure has increased to turn the UK economy into a manufacturing centre of excellence and at the same time become a nation of savers. But has the nation really turned its back on its former favourite pastime, shopping? Well, the hard data would suggest no. According to the [...]
Barratt on target for full year profit July 14, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments said the group’s full-year profits will come in above expectations as it continues to focus on maximising selling prices while keeping a lid on costs. The UK’s third largest housebuilder has pencilled in an operating profit of at least £85m with margins rising to four per cent. The average selling price rose [...]
Fuel price dip cuts inflation rate for June July 13, 2010 FALLING fuel prices helped annual inflation to ease in June for the second month in a row but core inflation, which excludes energy and food costs, worrying rose last month, official data showed yesterday. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed the consumer prices index (CPI) eased to 3.2 per cent last month from 3.4 [...]
Mortgage lending up in May but outlook unclear July 12, 2010 MORTGAGE lending rose slightly in May thanks to continued record low interest rates, the Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML) said yesterday. It reported that 42,000 loans worth £6bn for house purchase were advanced in May, a 15 per cent increase on a year earlier. Remortgaging activity recovered a little as well in May, rising on [...]
Property prices drop in June July 8, 2010 HOUSE prices in Britain dropped 0.6 per cent in June, the third successive monthly fall, a survey from mortgage lender Halifax has shown. Halifax said the decline was a continuation of a trend since the start of this year and was in line with its view that house prices would be broadly flat over 2010 [...]
Housing market confidence takes a knock as job losses worry owners July 6, 2010 CONFIDENCE in the housing market dipped slightly last month, as worries about interest rate rises and job losses loomed over homeowners, according to a survey released yesterday. Just over three-quarters of homeowners believe property prices will rise in the next six months, down from 81 per cent who predicted gains in April. Around 27 per [...]
LABOUR DATA IS A WORRY FOR THE US July 5, 2010 CFD MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT FOR many investors the long weekend in the US couldn’t have come at a better time. On top of Europe’s sovereign debt problems, and signs that Chinese growth is slowing, recent data from the US suggests that the much-hyped economic recovery may be reversing. We have seen housing data sour following [...]